FINAL FANTASY VII: Genesis
by DotNetDemon
Summary: With the world changed, will the outcome be the same? FINAL FANTASY VII: GENESIS is a new take on a beloved favorite and premiere of a brand new series. Join the adventures of Aeris Gainsborough as she endures a world at war, unethical experiments, and a nightmare unfolding before her eyes as she starts from the beginning of a terror that will alter the course of Gaia forever.
1. Prologue

THE FOLLOWING STORY IS A WORK OF FICTION BASED ON THE VIDEO GAME AND ANIMATED FILM(S) FINAL FANTASY VII™. FINAL FANTASY, THE FINAL FANTASY LOGO, THE METEOR GRAPHIC, FINAL FANTASY VII, THE FINAL FANTASY VII LOGO, FINAL FANTASY XIII, FINAL FANTASY VIII, AND ALL FINAL FANTASY CHARACTERS COPYRIGHT © 1987-2015 SQUARE ENIX; CHARACTER DESIGN BY TETSUYA NOMURA. THIS FICTION IS PROTECTED BY FAIR USE LAWS UNDER THE APPROPRIATE JURISDICTIONS. FINAL FANTASY VII™: GENESIS COPYRIGHT © 2015 ADAM HARDIN. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THE FINAL FANTASY LOGO IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF SQUARE ENIX.

ANY RESEMBLANCE TO ACTUAL EVENTS, LOCATIONS, OR INDIVIDUALS IS PURELY COINCIDENTAL.

* * *

**PROLOGUE**

I once read about this thing called the "multiverse"—a hypothetical set of infinite or finite universes that together comprise everything that exists such as space, time, matter, and energy—and that this can be referred to as "alternate universes." The idea behind it is that there exists an infinite amount of possibilities for an infinite amount of decisions for an infinite amount of universes that all coexist in this astrological container that we haven't decided what the shape for is yet. Maybe that's how the Cetra traveled throughout the galaxy? I'm not too sure…

I looked into my father's tired emerald eyes. The nightmares I had of him killing me had subsided once I found him. Still, I couldn't help but wonder… Did he really destroy me in another place, another time? No, it didn't matter. I wrapped my arms around him and held on tight as he caressed my hair.

"I love you, Daddy," I said.

"I love you too, sweetheart," he said soothingly.

My father kissed me on the forehead and said, "I won't leave you again, not now, not ever. I promise."


	2. One: Lust and Blood

"This one is Gainsborough, first name Aeris, middle name Lydia, sixteen years of age," the woman's voice said. "Sweetie, can you hear me?"

I managed to crack my eyes open to take in a glaring fluorescent overhead light. I groaned slightly. I could feel needles being inserted into my arms.

"What… fuck happened?" I managed to murmur.

The woman kept talking as various hands were examining my body, checking blood pressure, and listening to my heartbeat with a stethoscope. She said there had been a terrorist attack—a bombing, to be precise—of an electrical substation. Unfortunately for me, it just happened to cross my path on my way home from school as it always did; needless to say, the chain-link fence that surrounded the perimeter of the transformers did little to protect the bystanders from the debris and force. An insulator—a ceramic bushing which resembles a stack of dinner plates that is used to prevent electrical current from going where it isn't supposed to go—was blown off of its stepdown transformer and slammed into me with enough force that it launched me off the sidewalk and over the hood of somebody's car.

Another voice broke through before fading: "BP is eighty over thirty, pulse is dropping… internal bleeding? We need to get her to the operating…"

I lost consciousness after that. It would be ten days before I woke up again, Mom said. The insulator shattered four ribs, collapsed one of my lungs, gave me a concussion, and caused much internal bruising and bleeding of my abdomen. I remember lying there in my hospital bed watching the news reports on the attack: twenty-three people were injured, one person killed, over a quarter of a million in gil in damages. The group that claimed responsibility for it was named AVALANCHE; at the time, they were a fairly new group. Prior to that, most trouble had been caused by the Wutai Empire through the use of improvise explosive devices and random kidnappings, all while the empire was waging war against the Mideel Confederate States. I believe that Wutai and company were slightly pissed in the support that our country—Veldt—was giving to them. Since the capital city, Midgar, is my place of residence, I got to enjoy many sights of random explosions in hospitals, banks, fire stations, and military depots on my local evening news. Even though I was a young child it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that people were dying needlessly.

The Wutai Empire was an island range composed of rocky, mountainous regions and secluded jungle. The indigenous people, the Wutai, lived under an imperialistic system headed by Emperor Kisaragi. While not very large population-wise, the Wutai were known for their merciless brutality and constant desire to be treated seriously. The Mideel Confederate States decided to take the empire at its word and fired four ballistic missiles into one of their shipyards. While the World Council scrambled to adopt a peace resolution between the two countries, Shinra, the local friendly weapons supplier, decided to start arming both sides at the petition of shareholders. Unfortunately, Kisaragi's clan didn't like the idea of having to share their "toys" with others and decided the best way to teach Shinra a lesson was to kill their employees. The problem was that there was a very indiscriminate policy when it came to application so there was quite a bit collateral damage.

The Kisaragi clan, however, was unaware of, if not unable to stop, a coup forming within the empire's borders. Shinra, sensing an opportunity, stepped in to assist with the defection. All in all, the Mongol continent was broken up into eight distinct countries, shrinking Wutai's forces almost overnight to the size of a small northern piece. After the war, a peace treaty was signed and the new country of Wutai surrendered all materia—small physical globes consisting of life energy borne of the planet that allows its wielder to harness the planet's power over the elements—as well as faced severe economic sanctions. All unauthorized Wutai individuals in Midgar were rounded up and either deported or executed. Under the new regime, Godo Kisaragi, the former emperor, established a totalitarian state under the guise of a democratic republic. Many fled the nation because of this to seek refuge in the Dymaxion Union, most notably Midgar. Unfortunately, this led to another problem: human trafficking. But I digress…

AVALANCHE's beef was, from what I could tell from the newspapers, the union's dependence on mako. Mako reactors were, for the most part, free of carbon emissions and relatively safe. Instead of the ancient process of firing plutonium or uranium atoms against each other to create fission, mako allowed for the use of fusion to create energy. Unfortunately, this alternative energy source bankrupted many fossil fuels like coal and natural gas which, in turn, caused massive unemployment as the demand vanished almost overnight. AVALANCHE demanded that mako reactors be scaled back in order to promote a fair market. Meanwhile, the power companies scoffed at these demands and stepped up security at the plants and infrastructure.

As stated earlier I live in Midgar in the state of Veldt. Midgar sits about two hours from the coast in one direction and two hours from the mountains in another. I was born and raised here by my mother, Ifalna Alyse Gainsborough. Growing up I never knew my father; Mom always avoided my inquiries into his whereabouts and identity. Instead she would brush it off with an "I'm not sure…" to "I don't remember right now." Whoever it was must've been pretty bad if it was forcing my mother to make herself out to be an absolute whore. I had a happy childhood to say the least growing up in the suburbs. We lived in a small brick house near a running creek on a quiet neighborhood street. While Mom worked I would often find myself outside playing with sticks, pretending they were staves or nightsticks, or pick flowers to make pretty bouquets for our neighbor, Elmyra. I always wanted to be someone who you didn't want to fuck with; not that I wasn't nice, I just didn't want to be pushed around or taken advantage of like many of my peers.

Upon graduating from high school I entered the military to serve out my mandatory service. Well, I say mandatory while in reality it's optional for females; for me, I saw it as a chance to figure out what direction I wanted to take in life and obtain the skills needed to make sure I would survive. I chose the Marine Corps for their innovative approach to combat: though housed under the Department of the Navy, the Marines were known for their air, land, and see capability. Before entering, my flowing dark brown hair reached the middle of my back. Within the first twenty minutes of arriving at boot camp, it was barely past my neckline. Adjusting to getting screamed at every thirty seconds by men big enough to tear me in half while being forced to run everywhere was a little unnerving at first, but I managed. In my second year—I was twenty at the time and a corporal on-track to becoming a sergeant—the "buddy system" was introduced. It was through this system that I met my best friend: Tifa Madeline Lockhart.

Tifa was two years my junior and hailed from the small town of Nibelheim located on the Nibel continent across the ocean. I always loved looking at her short black hair and large brown eyes; the men were especially fond of her… endowment. She told me there was nothing left for her in her home country and wanted to try something new. After I made her climb four rope walls, crawl under fifty yards of barbed wire, and instilled into her the ability to recite her rifle's serial number forwards, backwards, upside down, and on fire, I asked her if this was different enough. I'll never forget her response: "Fuck me, I'll take up bartending." Tifa was honorably discharged after her minimum two years of service; I stayed on, got promoted to sergeant, and helped finance Tifa's bar. It was aptly named "7th Heaven" and was conveniently located in downtown Midgar, a mere thirty minute drive from where I was stationed at Camp Revels. Many officers and other jarheads frequented on Friday and Saturday, leaving Sunday open to sober up before reporting for duty the following Monday.

It was there in Tifa's bar that my world and everything I knew about it changed. I'm not sure if it was for better or for worse. I just knew that there was a lot of lust… and blood.


	3. Two: Special Delivery

It started on December 9th, 2007.

The 7th Heaven was, for what it was worth, a decent watering hole for the local populace. It wasn't an absolute dump like most of the places I was accustomed to but at the same time it wasn't some high-priced pretentious establishment that reeked of ego. I helped Tifa get it set up with what little money we managed to scrape together and assumed the role of a silent partner. The bar was homely; while not the best lit corner in the neighborhood, one could rest assured that they were not going to get shanked, raped, or given a job at Shinra. The floor was tongue-and-groove polished hardwood that we worked tirelessly on in order to have it into a presentable condition; the bar was no different in terms of polish. The wall was split into two sections horizontally with a chair rail molding where the upper portion was painted white and the lower half painted black. Tifa asked me the night we finished, "Do you think that looks good?" I told her that most patrons would probably have their eyes on her ass than on the decoration. She ran the paint brush straight up my face leaving a large black line; a paint fight ensued. An outsider would probably consider us more akin to sisters than best friends… and they would be right in that regard.

Tifa had let her hair grown out since leaving the military, allowing it to reach past her shoulders. I always loved playing with her hair; the mesmerizing raven color of it was a very distinct characteristic of people from the Nibelheim area since most had blonde hair and blue eyes. I also thought she was a lot prettier than me with her warm, compassionate reddish-brown eyes as opposed to my, as she put it, "piercing emeralds of mass destruction." Besides, most men had reservations about engaging in a relationship with a military girl.

It was a rather quiet evening. The neon clock on the wall silently ticked away at the passing seconds, trapped in an endless race to perform a complete cycle. It was around nine-thirty and the bar was empty for the most part, save for three patrons, Tifa, and myself. Being a Sunday evening many had already called it a night in order to prepare for the following workday. I stuck around because my shift didn't start until the afternoon—records processing to gauge how the newest batch was performing, otherwise known as eight hours of glorified secretarial work before I could go home—and besides: it wasn't often I got to stay out too late. Tifa was washing dishes while we conversed.

"How's your mom doing?" Tifa asked.

I took a gulp of my lager. "Stressed; something big has been rumbling about in the lab lately. She says Dr. Earley has been riding their asses like horseback."

Mom was a research scientist for Shinra's scientific research and development subsidiary, Prower Laboratories. Prower was headquartered in Midgar but maintained a large scientific complex just outside the city where Mom would commute to during the week. I always admired my mom's determination to finish things: raising me, working herself to death, and trying to maintain a balance of sanity, she managed to finish her doctorate in biochemistry. Dr. Thomas Earley was the director of the company with a direct report to Mr. Shinra himself. Dr. Earley was a mixed bag of sorts in that he was mostly reserved but had eccentric tendencies. His intellect was something that amazed many, having perfected the use of bioengineering and human physiology to construct mechanical augmentations that could go so far as replace actual limbs. The first candidate was the good doctor himself after contracting necrotizing fasciitis, better known as "flesh-eating bacteria." His right arm was consumed to the mid-bicep; to combat this while salvaging his arm with the intent that a cure would be found eventually, Dr. Earley constructed a fully-functioning nanorobotic exoskeleton that encompassed the infected limb up to the socket after having the rest of his deteriorating epidermis removed. The exoskeleton interfaced with his nervous and muscular system allowing for complete kinesis and functionality.

The glass door to the bar pushed open and in walked an old friend. I smiled as he plopped down on the barstool next to me and said, "Where the hell have you been all night?"

Cloud Strife gave a slight smirk and ordered a tall glass of pale Mideel-based ale. Like Tifa, Cloud hailed from the town of Nibelheim and ventured to Midgar in search of something better. After completing a voluntary tour of duty he decided to enroll in the local university as a pre-medical student while working nights as a paramedic. Tonight he was on duty, wearing his standard-issue light blue collared button-down shirt with black service pants and matching boots. Cloud resembled the typical Nibel populace with his spiky blonde hair, crisp blue eyes, and lighter toned skin. Slender, quiet, and reserved, once a few drinks got in him you couldn't shut him up. I knew he would be a great doctor whenever that time would come.

After Cloud took a large gulp from his drink he wiped the foam off his mouth. "Been busy this evening," he said. "Another stupid kid got hopped up on angel dust and thought he could knock a hole in a brick wall. Unfortunately for him, the brick wall he chose had a pulse."

"Ouch," Tifa quipped before taking a sip of a mixed drink she prepared for herself.

"Yeah," Cloud continued. "Strangely enough, Zack was called out to pick up the other numbnut."

Zack Fair was a good mutual friend. A native of Gongaga in the Mideel Islands area, Zack came to Midgar to attend Veldt State University and get his degree in criminal justice while completing his military requirement. He liked the area so much that he decided to stay and join the local Midgar police force. He was one year older than me and recently was promoted to lance corporal, a true rising star in the city.

"What happened to him?" I asked.

Cloud took another swig, saying, "Zack had to take him down to the station to get a statement, but more so to get him as far away from the drugged out twat before he murdered him. I've already cleaned up three dead bodies this weekend and I sure as hell think that's more than enough."

"Three? It must've been a slow Saturday."

"It has been, for the most part," the blonde medic breathed. "Not that I'm complaining in the least part."

The cordless phone sitting behind the bar started ringing. While Tifa tended to it Cloud and I continued conversing about random bullshit, our respective jobs, not paying any attention to the strange look Tifa was beginning to form while on the phone. She turned the phone off and placed it back on its cradle, her expression a mixture of confusion and worry. Cloud was the first to take notice, asking, "What's wrong, Tifa?"

Suddenly a huge explosion rocked the city. Cloud's radio immediately came to life with emergency traffic. Sirens could be heard in the distance outside. The power immediately went out save for the emergency lights above the doorways. We all rushed to the front door and looked outside: a massive fireball was emanating from the other side of town in the industrial sector, specifically from the power plant.

"Gotta go," Cloud said as he rushed out of the bar and into the neighboring parking lot.

I turned back to Tifa and asked, "Who was on the phone?"

She shook her head, saying, "I don't know who it was… it was a man's voice; said 'Tell Aeris that bitch has got a special delivery coming' and then hung up."

"Did the caller ID say anything?"

"It just said it was unlisted," Tifa shrugged. "Which is not uncommon, many people just call to see if we're still open. I'd like to know how whoever the hell that was knew you were here and what this 'special delivery' means?"

"I have no idea," I said, shaking my head. "It's not the first time I've made enemies, much less stalked."

Three years ago I had a male lieutenant attempt to corner me in the co-ed locker room and rape me. I managed to slip past him and notify the MPs on patrol who immediately placed him under arrest. After being court-martialed and found guilty he entered a plea agreement in which he would be dishonorably discharged in lieu of spending quality time in the brig. Not long after, a note was passed my way that suggested some wanted to exact unspecified revenge against me on behalf of their comrade. For a year afterwards I was tailed constantly and harassed with hang-up phone calls, sexually explicit sticky-notes left in conspicuous places, and even a bouquet of black roses sent to my doorstep. Then there were minor instances with subordinates who had to be disciplined and run-ins with rowdy civilians who got a little too out of hand for Tifa's establishment.

I took out my cellular phone and noticed that my signal was now nonexistent.

"Hey, check your cell," I said. "Do you have signal?"

Tifa took out her phone and shook her head, "No."

Whoever bombed the power plant, in a tireless effort to be cheeky bastards, also knocked out cellular communication channels.

I turned to Tifa and motioned for the door, saying "Come on. We need to go see if Mom's okay."

Whatever this "special delivery" was, I prayed that it would be one sent to the wrong address.


	4. Three: Persona Non Grata

I drove through the darkened streets as people milled around with flashlights and emergency spotlights. Police were busy directing traffic and requesting people stay in their homes. The plumes of smoke from the plant in the distance continued to reflect the raging fire. The reactor for Midgar used a graphite containment wall in order to shield the workers from mako poisoning. I found it strangely ironic that the life blood of the planet was also lethal in heavy doses, reaffirming my suspicion that indeed there was too much of a good thing. Tifa turned on the radio only to be greeted with the blaring emergency broadcast system and robotic voice listing instructions and evacuation procedures. Unlike other nuclear materials like plutonium or uranium, mako was a restrained compound in that it was naturally attracted to the earth from which it came. Thus, the mako spring on which the reactor was built served as a makeshift mako reservoir. More so, exposure to it on an intermittent basis was not proven to be hazardous—yet—only prolonged exposure.

I weaved through the backroads until we were on the highway heading towards the outskirts of town where Mom and I lived. As we cruised, Tifa pondered, "I guess it wouldn't be a coincidence if our mystery caller had something to do with this."

"You're goddamn right it's not a coincidence," I said. "But who the fuck is he?"

"I don't know. Maybe Barret can find out."

Barret Wallace was a large, muscular black man who was a former coal worker from Corel, a town located at the base of Nibel Gorge, east of Nibelheim. Corel maintained a coal-fired power plant as well as sheetrock and other gypsum products. Barret and his wife Myrna both worked at the coal fired facility as a coal handler and accountant respectively. Myrna became diagnosed with ovarian cancer; due to the economic downturn the area had encountered the company could not fully cover her medical costs through its provided insurance plan. Barret and his wife relocated to Midgar in order to receive treatment at a cancer hospital in the city of Durham three hours away on the coast. The town of Corel set up a trust fund to help offset the treatment charges while Barret took up a position with Shinra as a plant operator. Both had become regular customers in Tifa's bar, anxious to try and live "normal" lives even while Myrna, who now weighed roughly one hundred pounds, underwent weekly radiation and chemotherapy treatments.

I pushed my car—a newer model blue Ford Mustang—to eighty miles per hour. I knew home would be within reach in a few minutes given the rate of speed we were going, granted we didn't have an accident. Streetlamps and highway signs were unaffected by the blackout affecting Midgar as they were powered by emergency backup generators. Six minutes later we were pulling into my driveway; the inside of my house was dark with no activity.

My house was a small tan brick three-bedroom ranch-style home with an ashen shingle roof situated on an acre of land in a quiet neighborhood not far from the highway. The creek that ran through the outer perimeter of our backyard allowed me to start a small nursery of vibrant flowers. I earned the nickname "Flower Girl" as a teenager purveying my floral wares around the neighborhood and downtown. I stayed with Mom whenever I wasn't needed to babysit on the base; I didn't like her being alone all the time.

We ran through the garage and to the kitchen door. I unlocked the door and pushed it open. Mom was sitting at the kitchen table with a lit candle in the center and a large flashlight, fumbling with her phone. She looked up in utter disbelief, asking, "What happened?"

I let Tifa in and then shut the door, securing the deadbolt behind me. We sat down at the table.

"Someone blew up the power plant," I said. "Whole city is without power at the moment. I guess they also took out the transmission lines that connect it to the grid which is why we're currently in the dark."

The electrical grid that powered the continent of North Dymaxion was rather primitive compared to that of other industrialized areas. A massive overhaul had been undertaken ten years earlier but progress was slow with the dynamic shifting of the population. Brownouts were a common occurrence in the rural parts heading west while the city and suburbs were more stable.

"You girls want anything to eat?" Mom asked, motioning towards the fridge.

"I'm fine, Ifalna," Tifa said sweetly.

"I'm fine, too, Mom," I added. "How was work today?"

Mom removed a bottle of hard lemonade from the refrigerator and twisted the cap off. She took a few sips and relished in the bittersweet alcoholic beverage.

Mom sighed, saying, "Shalua was acting strange today; she definitely was not herself. I wonder if Thom is leaning on her, too."

Shalua Rui was rumored to be Dr. Earley's illegitimate daughter; there were certain idiosyncrasies about her that mirrored that of the good doctor himself, namely their pride and fierce dedication to their work, not to mention stellar intellect. Nobody bothered to investigate the matter any further than the surface: regardless of whether or not she was Earley's offspring, she was, at least according to Mom, a great scientist and an even better assistant. Shalua was in the first year of her doctoral program as she completed her undergraduate while completing her military prerequisite, thoroughly impressive considering she was the same age as Cloud. Though not in my platoon, I never heard any negative things about her.

"What are you working on that has Dr. Earley so riled up? You've been working yourself nearly sick for the past three months," I said.

Mom faltered for a moment before saying, "I'll tell you, but you've got to keep it to yourself. I don't need to have my ass in the sling. Agreed?"

I nodded.

Mom finished her drink.

"After the Wutai conflict and the surrender of all materia, one of them really stood out. A doctoral student named Lucrecia Crescent took it as part of her thesis on the balance of Ancient life here on Gaia and how we ended up here. The materia felt strange to her; almost superhuman in terms of handling. When asked about where this materia came from, the Wutai leaders said it was retrieved from a cave in the northern crater not far from where the original artifacts and data discs were discovered hundreds of years ago. Some of the data discs contained information on various religions and faiths, but one concept really stood out: the roots of Abraham."

Tifa asked, "Roots of Abraham?"

"A man that lived millennia ago that is the father of what came to be the three dominant religions of the world through his sons David, Isaac, and Ishmael. Through them, people worshipped a god that became known as Jehovah. It is believed that this is where the Ancients derived from, where we can trace our lineage, and how we can communicate with the planet. Lucrecia believed that God utilizes Gaia as a communication medium—much like the Internet—where the Lifestream serves as the fiber optic line that connects it all into a giant network."

Lifestream was the more appropriate term for raw mako contained in the ground according to scholars. Ancients, or those that held the ability, eavesdropped and communicated with the planet. It required concentration through prayer although there had been instances where the planet was able to grab one's attention involuntarily.

"Lucrecia called the materia 'Protomateria'," Mom continued. "She believed that it was the key to how human life occurred on this planet, whether spontaneously or from an outside source. Lucrecia went on to complete her dissertation and was awarded her degree but disappeared suddenly afterwards. Strangely enough, nobody went looking for her; her own family suddenly started acting like she never existed. Conspiracy fanatics had a field day while everyone at Prower kept their respective mouths shut. That's all I've been able to discover as this was years ago before I was born."

Mom lit a cigarette. Tifa bummed one and lit up as well. I passed as I had to keep my nicotine levels low for my upcoming physical.

Mom took a deep drag before continuing, "There was something discovered in the northern crater about the same time Lucrecia was researching the Protomateria. Actually… she discovered it herself, completely by accident. There in the north crater was a geological stratum, which was not uncommon as it is a well-known fact that a meteor smacked into Gaia thousands of years ago, but something caught her eye. Lucrecia was searching for more evidence of any other strange materias when she came upon an alien body."

"Alien?" I asked. "As in, an extraterrestrial being?"

"Well, alien in the sense that it was… not like anything else. It was somewhat human in shape but deformed. The Cetra Council flipped their collective shit when it was announced that the 'creature in the hole' would be acquired by Prower for research. Shinra and friends had to pay large sums of money to keep everything on the down-low as well as grease the appropriate palms to stop their bitching. Lucrecia named the creature… Jenovah."

Tifa finished her cigarette. She asked, perplexed, "Jenovah?"

"A play on words… Jehovah, being God, and nova, being 'new' from one of the old forgotten languages that the data discs talked about, so essentially a 'new God'. In all honesty, it would not surprise me if this discovery had something to do with her disappearance. About five years ago Dr. Earley was put in charge of the Jenovah project—apparently an ongoing affair—and now he believes he is onto something big. I've been working on studying the effects of Jenovah's DNA as it is introduced to a host body."

I leaned forward in my chair and probed, "They're injecting this shit into people?"

"Honey, they've been doing all sorts of crazy things with this stuff since day one, and I wasn't even born yet," Mom sighed, snuffing out her respective cigarette. "In any case, the last project manager is currently persona non grata at Prower and Shinra."

"Why?"

"I don't know. What I do know is that if Hojo shows up on any property that is owned by Shinra he will be shot on sight."


	5. Four: Always Faithful

"I got a phone call about Aeris tonight, Ifalna," Tifa said while getting up to go to the refrigerator for a beverage. "They said that she was due for a 'special delivery'."

Mom looked at me and asked, "Who've you pissed off this time?"

I shrugged it off, saying, "I don't know… I'm not too worried about it."

"Aeris…"

"I'm serious, Mom," I protested. "I'm in the goddamned Marines, I'm sure to piss off somebody every now and then."

Mom sighed and turned back to Tifa and asked, "Did the caller ID say anything?"

"No," Tifa replied. "It showed up as a private number. I would love to think that there's another Aeris running around out there and by chance the caller misdialed this is all coincidental, but my gut tells me otherwise."

"Could be just gas," I mused.

The bartender flipped me off.

Mom sighed, "Seriously, Aeris, I'm tired of having to stay awake at night wondering if I'm going to wake up the next day to your superiors retrieving me to identify your body. I want you to be extra careful; if this is anything like your rape case, then you've obviously made somebody who does not have any repercussions about doing you harm, probably much less being killed themselves."

The power immediately came back on. The air conditioning kicked back into action as the refrigerator and other standby appliances came back to life. No sooner had the electrons began flowing that Mom's cellphone began ringing. She picked up the smartphone, swiped across the screen, and answered. After a few moments of conversation, she ended with, "Okay, be there ASAP."

"Who was that?" I asked.

"That was Elena; we need to get to the labs. The power plant exploding was not just an isolated terrorist attack it seems. Suit up and let's get going."

Tifa and I made our way to my bedroom while Mom got ready. I put on my flak jacket while Tifa rummaged through my closet for a spare. Our jackets were a black camouflaged pattern with a synthetic reinforced fiber that wasn't available on the open market but readily available underground. I put my Marines lanyard around my neck and had Tifa slap the "MARINES" banner across the top of my back. The government had enacted a new ordinance that dictated whenever a terrorist attack took place all active military personnel that were off-duty were to either change into combat uniforms or something that readily identified them in the event that another attack was eminent. Not only did this help keep track of who was who on the battlefield, it also kept friendly fire down to a minimum. I opened my nightstand drawer and pulled out two handguns: a black Beretta M9 and an ashen-gray SIG P226 with black grips.

"Which one do you want?" I asked.

"Whichever weighs less," Tifa replied.

I tossed her the Beretta along with an extra clip from my drawer. She pulled the slide back to chamber the first bullet before holstering it and the extra ammunition in her flak jacket; I retrieved an extra clip for my gun and did likewise. Before we could leave there was an important procedure that needed to take place.

"You know the drill," I said. "Come here and raise your right hand."

Tifa squared herself in front of me and raised her right hand, feet together and eyes locked onto mine. I raised my right hand.

"Do you, Tifa Madeline Lockhart, solemnly swear that while you will support and defend the Constitution of the country of Veldt against all enemies foreign and domestic, that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, that you will obey orders of the President and the orders given by me, your appointed officer, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice, so help you God?"

"I do," she said.

"Tifa Madeline Lockhart, I hereby warrant your volunteer duty under my command as a Veldt Marine Corpsman until relieved. Semper fidelis."

"Semper fidelis. Let's go."

As silly as the motions we had to go through seemed, it was a necessary impediment to pressing matters. An incident years ago—before my time—caused quite a stir in terms of enlisting mercenaries for short-term roles within the armed forces. To combat this, two distinct classes were created: volunteers and warrant officers. Volunteers were uncompensated civilians that were, in a sense, requisitioned into duty when resources were tight. Warrant officers were specialized non-commissioned officers who maintained a specialized skill and would often lead a squad or work alone. As such, in the event we were ever court marshaled, Tifa could swear under oath that indeed her service was completely voluntary and no monetary compensation or health benefits were available to her. She could, however, under my direct command, possess a sidearm and a light duty automatic weapon. Grenades and other explosives were not allowed unless absolutely deemed necessary.

Mom drove while I tried to phone the base on my cellular device. My superior, staff sergeant Jack Hoppes, connected.

"Hi Aeris," he said, calm and collected as usual. I think a nuclear bomb could explode and he would brush it off as a mild thunderstorm. He continued: "I imagine you're aware that all hell has broken loose."

I ran my hand through my hair, saying, "You could say that. I'm traveling with Mom now en route to the lab."

"Good. We've currently got our hands full searching the city top-to-bottom. The Army's SOLDIER unit has dispatched three FCOs."

SOLDIER was the Army's highly specialized unit that dealt with sensitive situations that a lowly grunt wasn't equipped to handle. Competition was fierce to gain entry into the program and the training was incredibly brutal by Army standards. First class officers—or FCOs as they were known—were the top tier that reported to the lieutenants. Lesser classes, such as second class and third, fell in line in the pecking order.

"What's the damage?" I asked.

I could hear Jack shuffling papers as he answered, "So far, they took out one complete unit of the reactor. The control room above it was also destroyed. We've got a lot of casualties this time around, Aeris, so be careful."

"Roger that."

"Report in tomorrow at o-six-hundred for briefing; I know that's not going to give you much time to sleep but we have got to get to the bottom of this."

"Understood," I sighed. "See you in six hours."

It was going to be a long night.


	6. Five: Hide-and-Seek

Mom's champagne-colored Pontiac G6 slowed to a stop at the makeshift checkpoint on the interstate at the edge of Midgar's downtown. She rolled down her window and handed her driver license and Prower identification badge over to the grunt assigned guard duty. He wore blue camouflage fatigues and wielded a Special Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle—SCAR for short—with a thermal scope.

Veldt's elites weren't taking any chances: this was a SOLDIER, infantry class.

He scanned Mom's driver license with a wristband computer the size of a large smartphone. Satisfied with the results, he handed it back before looking up at me and noticing that I had on body armor.

"You plan on fighting a war tonight?" he asked.

"I hope not," I replied flatly. I handed over my military lanyard while Tifa retrieved her license. He took them both and scanned them.

The walking military machine asked me, "You armed?"

"I've got a P22; my volunteer has a Beretta."

"Has she been sworn in?"

"Yes," I said. "We really need to get going; I've got orders."

The infantryman handed back our IDs and motioned to his cohorts to let us pass. Mom slowly drove by them and resumed normal speed once we were in the clear.

"I hate it when they do that," Tifa breathed. "It makes me… uncomfortable."

Mom and I remained silent. When we reached the lab parking garage we noticed a swarm of federal police and military personnel wandering about the outside of the building. The Prower Labs principal laboratory building was 504,000 square feet and twenty-three stories high of steel, concrete, and secrets. The building was colored an ominous slate color and was adorned with little decoration on the outside. The loading bays and employee entrances were behind secured chain-link fencing with barbed wire running along the top as well as electrified fencing around the interior perimeter lots. The company's logo was the only thing on the glass front entrance doors leading into the marble lobby where armed security guards and a receptionist, also armed, determined who would be able to go further and who would be given the boot. The front quad flew three flags: the national flag of the country of Veldt, a Shinra flag, and a Prower Labs flag.

Mom pulled up to a fenced parking gate. Her car was equipped with an electronic remote fob under the hood that triggered the authorization module of the security system. The gate slowly pulled open and allowed us to exit the garage into the employee lot behind the building. We approached a backdoor with a card reader. Mom waved her lanyard across it and opened the door. The first floor consisted of offices and regular staff areas; the LED lighting and HVAC registers were integrated in thin lines along the drop ceiling save for smoke alarms. The whole floor was vacant; the only sounds were of various personal computers in the offices and the air conditioning. Mom walked into a nearby office and picked up the receiver of the desk phone.

I asked, "Calling Elena?"

"Yeah," she said. "Elena, it's Ifalna… uh-huh… Elena? Hello? Elena, are you there?"

Mom looked at the status screen on the phone before replacing the receiver.

She looked up at me and said, "Something's wrong. We need to get up to the eighteenth floor."

I nodded. Turning to Tifa, I ordered her to follow up the rear while I lead; Mom would be in between us. We formed a single-file line and started our way towards the lobby where the elevators were stationed.

"Why aren't the police in here?" Tifa asked as she performed a sweep of every office we passed.

"They probably can't get in," Mom explained. "Although it's strange they didn't seem to pay us much attention coming in. Elena must've told them I was on the way; there's a very, _very_ strict policy about letting outside law enforcement into the building."

"Don't you guys have your own internal security force?" I asked.

"When Elena called me the first time she had a few serving as an escort but they ended up getting separated. They're probably performing perimeter checks right now."

"Will they shoot us on sight?"

"I hope not," Mom said warily. She brushed back some of her long brown hair. I could see the signs of tiredness and confusion in her emerald green eyes, a trait we both shared. People often commented on how much we resembled each other.

The lobby was large and exquisite with marble countertops, polished columns, and lush flora placed in just the right places. The chairs looked comfortable enough to sleep in. Sitting at the receptionist desk was, of all people, Zack. His usually-slick black hair was a mess of sweat and blood stains while his black police uniform was slightly ripped on his left shoulder.

I shouted to him, "Zack!"

He spun around in the swivel chair and immediately came to his feet. Zack was slender like Cloud but a little taller; his eyes were of a lighter blue, reflective of his outgoing personality as compared to Cloud's quiet, reflective one.

"Aeris, thank God you're here, how in the living fuck do you open these goddamn doors?" he asked, motioning towards the desktop computer at the secretary's desk.

I turned to Mom for an answer.

"They can only be opened from the security office," she sighed. "It's on the floor we're headed to. How did you get in, exactly?"

Zack motioned towards his back, saying, "I shimmied over the fence as you can see and broke in through an exhaust vent in the men's restroom. Nobody can get in and we don't know where security went. I've been stuck in here for the past two hours and haven't been able to communicate with anyone from Prower or Shinra."

Mom stepped over to the keyboard and started typing away like she was imitating a computer programmer. She had changed from her evening attire into a t-shirt of her favorite baseball team, the Corel Cardinals, and blue jeans. This was a far cry from her Monday-through-Friday work attire, but even so, I always thought of my mother as a vibrant woman even dressed down. Mom began to frown.

"Hmm… Elena must've called from her cellphone," she said.

Zack looked over, asking, "Who?"

"There's a junior researcher upstairs. She called me and said there was trouble."

"Why did she call you then and not the police?"

We all looked at Zack before he put two and two together.

"Oh," he said sheepishly. "But, why you?"

Mom stood upright and explained, "Elena's very shy; doesn't have many friends. I'm one of the few people that actually make an effort to talk to her. I guess she trusts me."

"I see. Well, since you mentioned she called from her cell, I guess the phone lines are down in this building?"

"You got it. Come on: let's get up there before something else explodes."

Zack picked up a black twelve-gauge M1014 combat shotgun lying on the countertop of the secretary's desk. We walked to the elevator and pressed the call button. After entering the car, Tifa pressed the eighteenth floor button.

"I hope Elena's alright," Mom sighed. Turning to Zack, she said, "I called her from one of the office phones when we got in and got disconnected."

In response, Zack pumped six red-colored shells into his weapon and cocked it.

"Guess we better be ready for anything then, right?" he asked.

"Mom, get behind me, Tifa to the left, Zack to the right," I ordered. "We get out, sweep both sides and behind. I'll take point."

"Guess we're definitely not fucking around," Zack said solemnly. "Where are we headed, anyway?"

Mom spoke up, saying, "Start with the auxiliary lab. It's on the other side of the building, I'm afraid."

The elevator car came to a slow stop. The floor indicator read the number eighteen. The stainless steel doors opened to the security checkpoint for the lab entrance: a small, red-painted lobby with a white molding crown and baseboard with a single reinforced steel door and a card reader.

The door was blown off its hinges.

This was going to be the most nerve-wracking case of hide-and-seek I had ever played.


	7. Six: Angels and Devils

Past the entryway lay the laboratories. The floor was composed of solid white tiles without grout lines to make easy cleanup for fluids, body parts, and other objects. Overhead, recessed fluorescent ballasts hummed silently behind their steel cages. The walls continued the same design as they did in the entryway. Following the current path lead to a corridor that split to a left and right direction which, in turn, outlined the perimeter of the main labs towards the auxiliary labs where Elena hid.

I ordered, "Tifa, you and Zack bank left and take that side of the lab; Mom and I will take the other."

"What does this chick look like?" Zack asked.

"She's about five-seven, skinny, short blonde hair, big brown eyes," Mom said. "She'll be wearing a lab coat so she shouldn't be that hard to spot."

We started to move. Mom and I veered to the right while Tifa and Zack veered to the left.

"Stay behind me," I told Mom. "Let me know if anything tries to sneak up on us."

We slowly stepped through the bright hallway, hugging the wall and peering into each lab through the window on each door. Numerous warning signs about biohazard materials and radiation were placed on particular rooms that housed equipment that was foreign to me; others were simple miniature offices with a desktop computer and whiteboard. Unlike the entryway to the lab, nothing seemed out of place.

That is, until we got towards the middle of the floor.

Two large reinforced doors, much like the one at the entrance, were blown off their hinges. The explosion had been so large that it left a gaping hole in the wall and a lot of exterior damage in the hall. I peered around the corner: the doors led to a sealed decontamination chamber that was controlled by an electronic biometric reader. I couldn't tell if they had hacked their way in or gave up and went home.

Mom must've sensed my curiosity: "I don't know what goes on in there, but Dr. Earley spends an awful lot of time there. He normally takes a group of executive researchers and higher-ups. Let's keep going."

We pressed on until we reached the entrance to the auxiliary labs; Tifa and Zack were waiting for us. A pair of glass sliding doors separated the main labs from the auxiliary labs and was controlled by a nearby radio-frequency identification reader. Mom held her badge up to the reader. With a loud beep access was granted and the doors slid open.

"Zack, up front with me; Mom, in the middle; Tifa, you bring up the rear," I instructed.

We got into formation and started to slowly walk into the large lobby of the lab. Individual laboratories were placed around the outside of the lobby while common resources like workstations, examination tables, and even an operating table with overhead light, took up the center of the room all the way to the end.

Mom called out for Elena as we stepped down the center aisle.

"You know," Zack whispered to me, "I've never had to shoot anybody before."

"Me either," I whispered back as Mom kept calling out. "I hope it doesn't come to that."

"Scared?"

"Shitless," I sighed.

"I see her!" Mom shouted. She ran ahead of us as a blonde head slowly peered around from a doorway. Elena Price was barely out of high school and had already landed a job as a researcher's assistant at Prower Labs: during high school, she supplemented her evenings with college courses at the local community college in order to get a head start when she graduated. Her older sister, Gwyneth "Gun" Price, was a former gunnery sergeant in the Marines and eight years my senior. Instead of the commonly-accepted "Gunny" moniker, Gwyn preferred "Gun" as "Gunny" was reminiscent of her childhood nickname instilled by her late grandmother. Elena was an inch shorter than Gwyn at a mere five-foot-six and probably weighed ninety-eight pounds dripping weight. Her light blonde bob gave her a subtle mature look when accounting for her young age. Large, doe-like brown eyes were filled with tears chasing the ones that had already escaped down her slim cheeks. She wore a white stained lab smock over a red blouse and black skirt. I noticed that her shoes were missing.

"Why are you barefoot?" I asked.

Mom helped her up as she shivered with shock. She coughed and wiped her eyes.

"Tseng said I could move quieter if I didn't have heels," she said wearily.

"Tseng?"

Mom turned to me, saying, "He's the head of Dr. Earley's rapid response team, the Turks. They are the management body of the internal security personnel that we maintain here. Elena, where's Tseng now?"

She wiped her eyes and sniffed hard.

"I'm not sure," she breathed. "He said he was going to go check on something and he never came back. Before he left, he told me to hide in here and try and get in touch with you… said something about a containment breach, something called Angel Doll."

Mom backed up, uttering "Oh, shit…"

"What is it?" I asked.

Mom ignored me and continued questioning Elena.

She placed both hands on Elena's shoulders and asked in a dark tone, "Are you _sure _he said 'Angel Doll'?"

Elena nodded her head fervently.

"Aeris, what's going on?" Zack asked. "What's she talking about?"

Mom turned around and faced us, her face as pale as Elena's natural skin tone.

"We've got a huge problem," she said.


	8. Seven: Unauthorized Access

"What the hell was Elena talking about, Mom?!" I shouted.

Mom was frantically trying to open the security room door located just past the entrance to the main labs.

"No time to explain now, sweetie," she said. "Come on, goddammit…"

A keypad controlled access to the room. I pushed Mom aside and fired three shots into the apparatus. With a loud clicking noise, the door's restraints ceded. Mom gave me a sheepish look as she pushed the blockade open. The security room was dimly lit to reduce glare on the large bank of LCD monitors on the nearby wall above a black desk. Bound to the office chair was a thin man in a dark blue suit with slicked back long black hair tied in a pony-tail and narrow brown eyes. A blood red tilaka dotted the center of his forehead. His mouth was adorned with a large piece of silver duct tape.

"Oh God, Tseng," Mom said as she rushed over, frantically trying to undo his bindings.

I removed my combat knife from its sheath on my belt and began cutting away at the nylon weave. Once his arms were free, Tseng ripped off the tape on his mouth. Dried blood adorned the lower half of his face and stained his suit.

He gasped, "Ifalna… thank God. Where's Elena?"

"We found her in the auxiliary lab hiding; she's fine for right now," Mom said. "This is my daughter, Aeris."

Tseng stood up shakily and quickly shook my hand.

"Tseng Ding," he said. "I'm the director of security operations here at Prower."

"Looks like y'all are doing a bang-up job," I replied wryly. "What happened?"

"I don't know how those fuckwits got in here… When the power went out our emergency generators kicked on for less than a minute before everything went dark. There're not many people here tonight since it's Sunday—mainly just janitorial staff and junior researchers—I sent who I could to the executive suites above."

"I think I know how they got in."

Tseng looked at me.

"Exhaust vent in the men's room; we've got a cop with us who shimmied over the fence and made his way in through there," I explained.

Tseng breathed a sigh of relief, saying "So the police did come, thank God…"

"You called them?"

"Yeah; what security officers we did have in the building are upstairs protecting that staff."

"What about Elena? Why isn't she up there?"

Tseng started to blush and looked away.

"Tseng," Mom said in her motherly voice. "You two, weren't…?"

"Afraid so," he replied flatly. "Like I said, there're not many people here tonight."

"Tseng, Elena said that the Angel Doll was compromised. Is that true?" Mom asked.

"I… I don't know. Doctor Earley immediately went in there after the explosion to ensure everything was in order."

"How many are there? Are they AVALANCHE?"

"I think so… they were dragging around a teenager with them: young, redhead girl with green eyes. Kept calling her 'Jessie'; I don't think she was coming along willingly. I saw them blow the doors off the lab and also the exterior door to…"

He trailed off looking at me. He looked back at Mom who nodded.

"Aeris, you're obviously military," Tseng said. "Would you mind assisting me?"

"I'm coming, too," Mom said.

Tseng countered, "No. Ifalna, you need to take Elena and go up to the executive suites. Take the police officer with you."

"I also have a volunteer," I explained.

"Is she military, too?"

"Former. She's not affiliated with government; she owns a bar downtown."

Tseng thought for a minute, weighing his options. Finally, he nodded.

"Alright… Aeris: you and your associate come with me; Ifalna: you, Elena, and the cop go upstairs. Once we ensure that Doctor Earley is safe—or, at least, not dead on the property—we'll come get you. I wish we could just check the monitors to that hall but it's in a different security room and I would need one of my cohorts."

Mom sighed before looking at me.

"Please be careful," she said.

I hugged her, saying, "I will; I promise."

Mom left the security room. Tseng walked over to a set of light blue lockers on the other side of the room. He opened up the one marked with his name and removed a black flak jacket. After adjusting it for a snug fit, Tseng removed a black UMP submachine gun with shoulder strap.

"Here," he said, tossing me the gun. He tossed several magazines afterwards.

"Those are forty-five ACP," Tseng said. "Make them count; that shit is expensive."

I inserted the magazine into its position and chambered the first round before pulling up the stock to allow for better sight aiming. Tseng was finishing preparation of his UMP when I heard Tifa jogging down the hallway. She came through the door quickly.

"Is it too late to join the fun?" she asked.

"Never," Tseng said. He tossed her a Mythril Arms M12 model twelve-gauge pump-action shotgun and a small box of twelve-gauge shells.

"Tifa, this is Tseng Ding," I said. "Tseng, this is Tifa Lockhart."

"Aeris tells me you're a bar owner," Tseng said as Tifa pushed shell after shell into her gun's magazine.

"Sure am; 7th Heaven, down off Pine and Church," she replied. "You need a regular watering hole?"

"If we survive tonight, I'll bring the whole fucking team there."

Tifa smiled, saying, "Come thirsty."

"Ready?" Tseng asked.

Tifa and I nodded. Tseng pulled back the slide on his gun and chambered the first round.

"Then let's go take care of this unauthorized access dilemma."


	9. Eight: A War You Cannot Win

Tseng stood ready at the biometric reader. The reader consisted of a palm print and retinal scan. On its side was a keyhole with a red outline and the word "EMERGENCY" written on it. Tseng reached in his pocket and pulled out his keys. He shoved one into the key hole and turned to the right ninety degrees and then back to its upright position before removing the key. The fire alarm strobes began to flash and the alarm horn sounded three pulses in a continual loop. I turned around and looked at the remnants of the heavy security doors that had been obliterated: whoever managed to take them out must've been hauling enough C4 to level a tank.

"They must've been here before," I pondered aloud. "Nobody would be carrying around that much bomb material just for shits and giggles."

"Maybe Dr. Earley can tell us more," Tseng sighed as the clear decontamination chamber door slid open. "Step inside, please; this will only take a moment."

We stepped inside the chamber. It was about the size of a master bathroom with sprayers overhead and a grilled floor underneath. The walls were smooth steel with various pores in them. A light mist began to spray into the room. Tifa took a sniff.

"Lysol?" she asked, bewildered.

Lysol was a hospital-grade disinfectant that carried a distinct smell.

"What can I say, the shit works," Tseng replied.

The exit to the chamber slid open after a few more seconds. Another hallway greeted us, though this one was L-shaped. Standing at the intersection of the two branches, I surveyed the area: the décor matched that of the hallway outside the chamber, only there was a more chilling effect in the air. I looked down at the floor and noticed a smeared blood trail and drag marks leading to a set of reinforced windowed double doors.

Tseng must've noticed my curiosity as he said, "That way leads to the lab. I'm not allowed to discuss what goes on in there. But that's not the way to the Angel Doll…"

He turned and looked towards the other hallway of the intersection ahead: another set of reinforced windows double doors with very large "AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY" and "DEADLY FORCE AUTHORIZED" warning signs adorned upon it.

I sighed, "Let me guess…"

Tseng brought his gun up and aimed down the sights as he hugged the left wall. I followed while Tifa brought up the rear, both of us hugging the wall as well. When we got closer to the door, I noticed that the keypad that controlled access to it was ripped off the wall and various jumper wires were attached with alligator clips. Tseng reached out and grasped the horizontal handle and gave a gentile tug. The large wooden door slowly opened to expose what looked like a small intensive care unit of a hospital, complete with nurse's station and four large bays for patients. I walked around Tseng and cleared the immediate area before the rest of my group joined me. The nurse's station was empty though there were signs that it was used regularly; various charts and folders were scattered across the wooden top of the counter. Only one of the patient bays was lit. Tseng walked over to it slowly and looked in.

"Mrs. Earley?" he said softly.

He walked in deeper past a curtain where I couldn't see. Tifa and I walked up to the bay entrance and peered in. A hospital bed was perpendicular to the light blue wall with a soft fluorescent light above it. Various fluid bags hung from their poles above a complex electrocardiogram display and various diagnostic instruments. In the bed was a slim woman with long, wavy dark brown hair and large brown eyes. Along with her olive skin, save for eye color, she reminded me a lot of my mother. Her sweet, diamond face looked up at us with delight. I assumed she didn't have many visitors, friendly or hostile.

"Tseng, what's going on?" she asked nervously.

We approached Mrs. Earley's bedside. She wore a comfortable white nightgown underneath the blue hospital sheets. The bed was in its sitting position before we entered the room.

"There's been a terrorist attack, ma'am," Tseng said solemnly. "We had reason to believe that they were coming for you for whatever reason."

Mrs. Earley's eyes widened.

"Me?" she asked.

"Afraid so," Tseng continued. "We were looking for Dr. Earley. Do you know where he is?"

"No… no, I don't. Who are these young girls with you?"

"Oh, my apologies; this is Aeris Gainsborough and Tifa Lockhart."

Mrs. Earley smiled earnestly at me, saying, "You're Ifalna's daughter… I don't know why I was asking. You look just like your beautiful mother."

I smiled weakly and said, "Thank you, Mrs. Earley."

"Please dear, call me Melissa. Is your friend here a Marine, too?"

"I was," Tifa replied. "After my time I opened a bar here in town."

Melissa continued to smile, saying, "I wish I could get out again; I haven't had Wild Chocobo in years."

Tifa smiled and suggested maybe she could smuggle some in.

Tseng brought everyone back to task.

"I hate to be 'that guy'," he said reluctantly. "But we really need to find Dr. Earley. There was blood leading to… the laboratory."

I noticed the slight pause in Tseng's statement.

"I see," Melissa said looking over the edge of her bed. "Well, can you help me with this issue first?"

I walked around the bed to see what she was referring to. I stopped dead in my tracks as the gaze of the redhead from the security monitor met mine. She was sitting in the floor next to the hospital bed in the shadows with her knees pulled up to her chest. Tears streamed down her fair face and stained the pink shirt she wore.

"It's okay, sweetheart; these are friends," Melissa explained.

The girl immediately pushed herself up to her feet and ran into me. She threw her arms around my torso and buried her face into my chest above my flak jacket, sobbing. I put my gun behind me and put my arms around her, trying to console her.

"It's okay, honey, nobody's going to hurt you now," I whispered to her reassuringly. Her natural dark red hair was matted with sweat and dried blood as were her blue jeans. I gently caressed her back as she continued to cry.

"What's your name?" I asked gently.

She pulled back enough to catch a breath and wipe her eyes. With much strain in her voice, she managed to choke out, "Jessica."

"How old are you, Jessica?"

Mucus dripped from her nose as her eyes continued to water.

"Fourteen," she said. "Dead… they're all dead…"

"Who's dead, sweetie?"

Jessica broke down into my arms as she wailed. Tseng came over and whispered in my ear, "Leave her with Mrs. Earley; we need to find her husband."

I turned to Tifa and motioned for her to come over and take Jessica from me. Tifa put her arms around the sobbing child's shoulders and walked her away from Tseng and me.

"Can you take care of them?" I asked her.

Tifa nodded. I turned back to Tseng who began leading the way back into the hallway. We silently stalked the wall up to the bend. Tseng peered around the corner and motioned for me to take point. I brought my UMP up and silently rounded the corner. Now that I was closer to the drag marks I could see bullet casings littering about the floor and bullet holes in the wall. Tseng came up behind me quickly and over to a card reader next to the metal doors that blocked our way. After looking through the narrow window, he removed a red access card from his back pocket and slid it through the card reader. With a loud beep the doors unlocked. I ran towards the doors and, together with Tseng, pushed through them.

The laboratory was massive and spanned three floors total. Numerous subdivisions and a mezzanine comprised the layout of the lab among the various tables, crates, and large medical-looking equipment. Everything was white and stainless steel; there was little to no clutter. Various environmental suits hung in specific stations with emergency showers and facilities.

Doctor Thomas Earley, Ph.D., stood directly in front of us, silently mopping up the bloody drag marks. Behind him were the bodies of five assailants—presumed to be AVALANCHE—piled up neatly like a small stack of pancakes. Dr. Earley dunked his mop in the yellow janitor's mop bucket and squeezed out the excess water before turning around to face us.

"I thought I would give environmental services a break," he said stoically.

Dr. Earley was, by all accounts, a unique one, at best. He stood a little taller than Tseng and was broader in his frame. Thick black hair and a trimmed black beard on a square face with brown eyes that could go for hours without blinking it seemed described his appearance. Dr. Earley preferred to wear a suit whenever in the office and tonight was no different; a black Armani suit with red necktie and unbuttoned coat was today's wardrobe of choice. He turned back towards the pile behind him.

"AVALANCHE is waging a war it cannot win," he sighed. "I killed four with one of their own weapons and broke the last one's neck. Unfortunately… it was a woman."

Tseng and I remained silent as Dr. Earley examined his afflicted hand on which the exoskeleton enveloped.

"Tell me, Tseng," Dr. Earley said as he returned to facing us. "Why can't you fuck that young scientist on your own time?"

Tseng blushed and looked down.

"I'm… I'm sorry, Dr. Earley," he said. "It won't happen again."

Dr. Earley turned his attention to me.

"Aeris, I wasn't expecting Jack to dispatch you. I just wanted him to send someone competent for cleanup duty."

"Elena called my mom, Dr. Earley," I said shyly. "I decided to come with her."

"I see. Tell me, my dear, have you gotten any strange phone calls this evening?"

"As a matter of fact…"

Dr. Earley smiled; something he was not known to do. His voice was commanding yet alluring. He narrowed his thick black eyebrows.

"I will be coming to your base tomorrow after the debriefing with Jack. You're not the only one that's due for a delivery of some sorts, it seems."

Tseng looked at me and then at Dr. Earley.

"Doctor, what are you talking about?" he asked.

"Let's just say that Hojo's chickens are coming home to roost. And, unfortunately, some unfortunate people are going to end up with a lot of chicken shit on their hands."

"But I've never dealt with Hojo," I said. "How can you be so sure it's him?"

"You haven't, Sergeant," Dr. Earley replied. "But someone in particular has. I suggest you ask your mother why Hojo has a kill warrant out on his head if he steps onto this property."

"She said that she didn't know…"

"I would ask again," he said firmly. "If she refuses to relinquish the details then come see me. There is a lot that your mother is keeping from you and, to be honest, I am responsible for most of it. What do you know about your father? Do you even know his name?"

I shook my head.

Dr. Earley looked down at the floor and propped himself up using his mop.

"I see," he continued. "One thing at a time then… In any case, Tseng: help me clean up here. Aeris, you are free to leave if you so wish."

Tseng informed Dr. Earley about the people on the upper floor and Jessica. Doctor Earley was taken back.

"Well, okay then. Change of plans: Tseng, take the girl to the police officer and open the front entrance. The coroner will need to take these bodies out. I'll only authorize NCIS or I-1 to investigate this area and I will pick the investigators. Have security shut down the complex to everyone else afterwards. All employees are on paid administrative leave until we get the damage fixed. Aeris, you and your party are free to leave; I'll see you later today."

Tseng asked, "And your wife, Dr. Earley?"

Dr. Earley looked at me before looking back at Tseng.

"Keep her safe, please; she's the only thing I've got left worth living for."

I took a deep breath and prepared mentally to face the onslaught of the rest of the day.


End file.
